U.S. crude up on less than expected U.S. crude stock build

U.S. crude futures held near $51 a barrel after briefly rising more than $1 on Wednesday, following a smaller than expected rise in crude stocks according to an industry group.

The rise was capped by bearish outlook by the International Energy Agency (IEA) which warned that ample supplies will raise global inventories before investment cuts begin to significantly dent production.

"The supply growth in 2015 is likely to continue unabated, albeit at a somewhat lower rate. This all means a weak market in 2015 and even lower oil prices. Demand rebound will not save the oil market," Fereidun Fesharaki at Facts Global Energy said in a note on Wednesday.

U.S. crude futures were trading up 68 cents at $50.70 a barrel as of 0006 GMT, after a steep fall in the previous session when the contract settled down $2.84, or 5.4 percent, at $50.02 a barrel.

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U.S. crude futures held near $51 a barrel after briefly rising more than $1 on Wednesday, following a smaller than expected rise in crude stocks according to an industry group.

The rise was capped by bearish outlook by the International Energy Agency (IEA) which warned that ample supplies will raise global inventories before investment cuts begin to significantly dent production.

"The supply growth in 2015 is likely to continue unabated, albeit at a somewhat lower rate. This all means a weak market in 2015 and even lower oil prices. Demand rebound will not save the oil market," Fereidun Fesharaki at Facts Global Energy said in a note on Wednesday.

U.S. crude futures were trading up 68 cents at $50.70 a barrel as of 0006 GMT, after a steep fall in the previous session when the contract settled down $2.84, or 5.4 percent, at $50.02 a barrel.

Brent crude previously fell $1.91, or 3.3 percent, to settle at $56.43 a barrel.

U.S. crude stockpiles rose last week as refineries cut output, while gasoline and distillate inventories rose, data from industry group the American Petroleum Institute showed after the oil market settled on Tuesday.

Crude inventories rose by 1.6 million barrels in the week to Feb. 6 to 413.7 million, compared with analysts' expectations for a increase of 3.7 million barrels.

The United States will remain the world's top source of oil supply growth up to 2020, even after the recent collapse in prices, the IEA said. It predicted global demand for OPEC crude will rise in 2016 to 29.90 million barrels per day, after holding at 29.4 million barrels per day this year.

The IEA's bearish outlook was supported by the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) which kept its 2015 and 2016 domestic oil production expectations virtually unchanged from the previous month. The EIA expects total U.S. oil production in 2015 to be 9.3 million barrels per day, slightly lower than the 9.31 million barrels per day forecast in last month's short-term energy outlook.

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